AUGUSTA, Georgia (April 4, 2012) -- An
extremely talented group of amateur
players
will tee off Thursday at The Masters with
high
hopes of making a splash --- and making
the
cut.

Interestingly enough, it will be the last
event
as amateur players for two budding stars.
Reigning U.S. Amateur champion Kelly
Kraft and
British Amateur victor Bryden Macpherson
will
turn professional Monday, forgoing their
exemptions into other majors this season.

This group also includes what is
presumably
the oldest first-time player in Masters
history,
Randal Lewis. The 54-year-old financial
planner
from Michigan won the 2011 U.S. Mid-
Amateur.
He's likely to be a fan favorite for his
every-
man quality.

The group, of course, also features three
players sure to be back to Augusta and in
contention in the near future. World No. 1
Patrick Cantlay, last year's low-amateur at
Augusta Hideki Matsuyama and U.S.
PubLinks
champion Corbin Mills are all very capable
of
making the cut --- and then some --- this
week.

Learn more about the amateur players
golf
fans around the country and world will
undoubtedly be pulling for this week at
The
2012 Masters:

Patrick Cantlay

Patrick Cantlay, 20, UCLA
SophomoreHow he qualified: U.S. Amateur
Runner-UpQualifications: For all of the great
things Cantlay has done on the amateur
circuit, his biggest claim to fame and silver
lining this Masters week is, oddly enough,
how
he's fared in professional tournaments.
This
past summer, Cantlay put forth an
impressive
string of four straight Top 25 finishes,
including
a stellar performance at the Travelers
Championshp in June. Cantlay is the top-
ranked amateur player in the
amateurgolf.com
world rankings. Last year, Cantlay also
won
the NCAA's west regional and the
Southern
California Amateur. He was runner-up,
too, at
the Western Amateur and the NCAA
National
Championship.

Kelly Kraft

Kelly Kraft, 23, Denton, TexasHow he qualified: U.S. Amateur
ChampionQualifications: Kraft, a former star
at
Southern Methodist, will turn pro Monday
and
hopes to make a splash in his only major
exemption before forgoing bids to the U.S.
and
British Opens. This season, Kraft has laid
low,
performing well at the Master of the
Amateurs
in Australia, finishing fourth in a high-
quality
event. Last year, however, Kraft
catapulted to
No. 5 in the world amateurgolf.com
rankings
with wins at the U.S. Amateur, Trans-
Mississippi and Texas State Amateur.

Bryden Macpherson

Bryden
Macpherson, 21,
AustraliaHow he qualified: British Amateur
ChampionQualifications: Like Kraft,
Macpherson
will turn pro following the event and
questions
surround his preparation for this event as
a
professional career looms. That said, the
former Georgia Bulldogs ace became only
the
second Australian to win the British
Amateur
and is currently the world's 25th-ranked
amateur with solid play at the Australian
Amateur, Dogwood and Jones Cup helping
out.

Hideki Matsuyama

Hideki Matsuyama,
20,
JapanHow he qualified: Asian Amateur
ChampionQualifications: Despite being one
of
the youngest players in this year's crop of
amateurs, Matsuyama may be the member
of
the group most ready to shine at Augusta.
Last year, Matsuyama made the cut and
was
the low-amateur at the Masters, tying for
27th. This year, he heads in with more
confidence. Last season, he won the Asian
Amateur and made the sweet 16 of the
Japan
Amateur. Currently tied for No. 25 in the
world
rankings by amateurgolf.com, Matsuyama
also
won a professional event on the Japan
Golf
Tour.

Randal Lewis

Randal Lewis, 54,
MichiganHow he qualified: U.S. Mid-
Amateur
ChampionQualifications: Being the oldest
player
to win the U.S. Mid-Am, Lewis may bring
plenty of golf experience to the table but
this
the 54-year-old's first swing at Augusta.
Lewis
is a legend in Michigan and, being the
average
Joe of the field, is bound to gain
supporters
along the way. Lewis turned professional
for a
short time following his college career but
opted to regain his amateur status and
has a
successful career in finance.

Corbin Mills

Corbin Mills, 21,
Clemson
JuniorHow he qualified: U.S. Public
Links
ChampionQualifications: It may be Mills'
first trip
to Augusta for The Masters, but he'll feel
well
at home. The Clemson star will have
assistant
coach Jordan Byrd, brother to PGA Tour
player
Jonathan Byrd (who helped provide some
local
knowledge during practice rounds) on his
bag.
And Mills, the No. 9 player in the world,
has
played well of late, firing a 65 in his most
recent competitive round. In addition to
the
U.S. PubLinks, Mills won The Players
Amateur
and was tied for fourth at the Palmetto
Amateur last season

ABOUT THE The Masters

One of Golf's four professional majors
traditionally invites amateurs who have reached the
finals of the US Amateur, or won the British Amateur
or
the US Mid Amateur. Also included are
the winners of the relatively new Asia Pacific Amateur
and Latin American Amateur.